Syllabus for CIS-301-OL

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Management Information Systems provides an overall picture of information systems in the conduct of business. The course covers the organization and management of a networked enterprise, the infrastructure of information technology, the necessary support systems for the digital company, and the building and managing of information systems in a global business environment.

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COURSE OBJECTIVES

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COURSE MATERIALS

• Management Information Systems: Managing the Digital Firm, 11th ed., by Kenneth C. Laudon and Jane P. Laudon, (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2010).
  
  ISBN-13: 978-0-13-607887-6

MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

To participate fully in course activities, you need to have daily access to a personal computer and command of certain basic computer skills, including the ability to send and receive e-mail with attachments.

In addition, your computer system must meet the following minimum specifications:

• Windows 98 or higher or equivalent operating system.
• Personal Internet access.
• A full-featured Internet browser like Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 or Firefox 1.X or higher.

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COURSE STRUCTURE

Management Information Systems is a three-credit online course. It consists of six study modules.

Modular study assignments include text readings and written assignments based on the text. You are required to participate in graded online discussions and an ungraded "Introductions" forum, which occurs during the first week of the semester, as well as the written assignments.

For the course's assignment modules (study assignments, online discussions, and written assignments), go to the Assignment Modules area of the course Web site. See also the Course Calendar for an overview of the assignments and for all due dates.

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ONLINE PARTICIPATION

In addition to an ungraded "Introductions" forum, Management Information Systems requires you to participate in graded class discussions.

Communication with the mentor and among fellow students is a critical component of online learning. Participation in online discussions involves two distinct activities: an initial response to a posted question (discussion thread) and subsequent comments on classmates' responses.

You will be evaluated both on the quality of your responses (i.e., your understanding of readings, and concepts as demonstrated by well-articulated, critical thinking) and quantity of your participation (i.e., the number of times you participate meaningfully in the assigned forums). Responses and comments should be properly proofread and edited, professional, and respectful.

Meaningful participation in online discussions is relevant to the content, adds value, and advances the discussion. Comments such as "I agree" and "ditto" are not considered value-adding participation. Therefore, when you agree or disagree with a classmate, the reading, or your mentor, state and support your agreement or disagreement.

Deadlines for posting responses to the discussion questions are given in the course Calendar.

Specific directions for these activities, and the questions to be discussed, are given in the Assignment Modules area of the course Web site.

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WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS

Management Information Systems has two types of written assignments in each module. A typical module will contain assignments of the following types:

• Case Studies In these activities you will examine a real world business, event, or trend and answer questions about it. You'll submit your answers to your mentor through the Submit Assignments area.



• Written Assignments Each module has several written assignments in which you'll be asked to compose several paragraphs or a short paper in response to your reading. These, like the Case Studies, are submitted through the Submit Assignments area.

Your written assignments are built around associated lessons. Formulate responses in your own words (do not merely copy answers from your reading materials). Although your responses will be primarily drawn from information in the textbook, you may also use outside sources to strengthen your responses. Your textbook, outside sources, including Internet Web sites, should be cited where appropriate and in an appropriate manner.

Prepare your written assignments using whatever word processing program you have on your computer. Include your name at the top of the paper, as well as the course name and code and the semester and year in which you are enrolled.

Before submitting your first assignment, check with your mentor to determine whether your word processing software is compatible with your mentor's software. If so, you can submit your work as you prepared it. If not, save your assignment as a rich-text (.rtf) file, using the Save As command of your software program. Rich text retains basic formatting and can be read by any other word processing program.

When satisfied that your assignment represents your best work, submit it to your mentor through the appropriate submission link within the Submit Assignments area of the course. Use the Browse button within this link to locate and submit your assignment file.

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EXAMINATIONS

This course requires you to take two examinations: a proctored midterm examination and an unproctored, online final examination during the last week of the semester.

Midterm Examination
The midterm is a closed-book, proctored exam. It is two hours long and covers material in Modules 1 through 3. It consists of essay questions focused on course and modular objectives.

You may take the examination only during the designated exam week, at an approved location, and with an approved proctor. In this regard, you need to schedule your exam and submit your "Proctor Request Form" with the necessary documentation during the first week of the semester. (See Administrative Forms in the General Information area of the course Web site.)

For more information on scheduling examinations, see the section Examinations and Proctors in the Online Student Handbook.

Final Examination
The final is a closed-book, unproctored, online exam. It is two hours long and covers all reading and assignments from Modules 4 through 6 of the course. It consists of essay questions focused on course and modular objectives.

The final exam is taken online in Blackboard. An exam link will be activated and made available to you in the Tests & Quizzes area of the course site at the start of exam week. You may take the exam at any time during that week, but no later than midnight Saturday (eastern time). If you are on a course extension, you will need to arrange with your mentor a time to reschedule the final exam.

Sample Examination
You will find a sample online examination in the Tests & Quizzes area of this course site. Use this sample exam to familiarize yourself with the online testing setting and format before you take your online exam. Keep in mind the following potential differences between the sample exam and your online exam:

• The content of your exam will match the content of your course; the sample exam has some generic questions on art history, world history, and environmental science.
• Your exam is will include only essay questions. The sample exam includes all the types that you might encounter in any online assessment at Thomas Edison State College.
• You will be able to enter and take your exam just once—once you have entered the exam you must complete it. The sample exam may be taken as often as you like.
• There will be a penalty for exceeding the time limit in your actual midterm and final exams (see the "Statement about Cheating" below), whereas there is no corresponding penalty with this sample exam.

Statement about Cheating
The final examination in this course is an unproctored exam. That means you will not be supervised while taking the test. You are on your honor not to cheat during the exam. Cheating means:

• Looking up any answer or part of an answer in an unauthorized textbook or on the Internet, or using any other source to find the answer.
• Copying and pasting or in any way copying responses or parts of responses from any other source into your online test. This includes but is not limited to copying and pasting from other documents or spreadsheets, whether written by yourself or anyone else.
• Plagiarizing answers.
• Asking anyone else to assist you by whatever means available while you take the exam.
• Copying any part of the exam to share with other students.
• Telling your mentor that you need another attempt at the exam because your connection to the Internet was interrupted when that is not true.

If there is evidence that you have cheated or plagiarized in your exam, the exam will be declared invalid, and you will fail the course.

Please also note that the exam is time-limited. That means you only have the allotted time in which to complete the exam. If you exceed the time limit on the exam, you will be penalized by having two points deducted for every minute that you exceed the time limit. This may also result in your failing the course.

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GRADING AND EVALUATION

Your grade in the course will be determined as follows:

Letter grades for online participation, written assignments, and the final examination are based on the following numerical grades:

Note: To receive credit for the course, you must earn a letter grade of D or higher on the weighted average of all assigned course work (e.g., exams, assignments, projects, papers, etc.). You will receive a score of 0 for any work not submitted.

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STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS

First Steps to Success
To succeed in this course, take the following first steps:

1. Read carefully the entire Syllabus, making sure that all aspects of the course are clear to you and that you have all the materials required for the course.



2. Take the time to read the entire Online Student Handbook. The Handbook answers many questions about how to proceed through the course, how to schedule exams and arrange for proctors, and how to get the most from your educational experience at Thomas Edison State College.



3. Familiarize yourself with the Blackboard environment—how to navigate it and what the various course areas contain. If you know what to expect as you navigate the course, you can better pace yourself and complete the work on time.



4. If you are not familiar with Web-based learning, or specifically with the Blackboard platform, be sure to review the processes for posting responses online and submitting assignments before class begins.